fray

fray
joss whedon/karl moline/andy owens
graphic novel/supernatural
dark horse comics
published 2003

Hundreds of years in the future, Manhattan has become a deadly slum, run by mutant crime lords and disinterested cops.  Stuck in the middle is a young girl who thought she had no future until she learns she has a great destiny.  In a world so poisoned that it doesn't notice the monsters on its streets, how can a street kid like Fray unite a fallen city against a demonic plot to consume mankind?

ohmygodjosswhedonneverceasestoamazemeheisthebestwriterintheworlduniverse

I picked this up just because it was written by Joss Whedon.  My standard m.o.  Got a couple of pages into it and realized this was the most amazing thing ever!  He followed up the Slayer story a hundred years after Buffy!  With flying cars!  And crime bosses who live in fishtanks!  Brilliant!

Melaka Fray is what I imagine Faith could have been.  She's daring, reckless, grumpy and good.  But it's not your standard slayer story.  She doesn't have the memories, the dreams of all the slayers before her.  She doesn't have the drive because she doesn't have her history.  She's just a girl who can fight pretty good.  But there's a reason and it was surprising, but it made perfect sense.

Of course, I wish this was a series.  At the same time, I'm glad it's not.  It was a good complete story with a bit of mystery at the end that leaves you alone with your own imagination to fill in the blanks. 

Loved it.